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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate St. Joseph Church in
4Island Grove on the occasion of its 150th anniversary; and
 
5    WHEREAS, In 1864, the first Catholic family arrived in
6Island Grove, and they were joined by 12 more Catholic
7families by the start of the new decade; during this time, the
8nearest Catholic church was in Teutopolis, a journey which
9became a hardship for Island Grove parishioners during cold
10and wet months; and
 
11    WHEREAS, The local Catholic families expressed interest in
12building a church in the Island Grove area; in the fall of
131870, Landelin Koebele, the head of one of the Catholic
14families, donated four acres of land to be used for church
15property; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Father Mauritius Klosterman deemed the land
17appropriate and suitable for the church site, and construction
18of St. Joseph Church was started in the spring of 1872; under
19the guidance of experienced carpenter and fellow parishioner
20Brother Camillus, the exterior of the church was completed in
21the fall of 1873; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In the spring of 1874, St. Joseph Church was
2furnished by Dr. Eversman, who donated an altar and 16 benches
3to accommodate 80 people; the building was fully furnished and
4ready for services on March 25, 1874, giving parishioners the
5opportunity to celebrate the Feast of Annunciation and the
6first Mass in the new church; and
 
7    WHEREAS, St. Joseph Church grew to accommodate a parochial
8school, attended by 14 children, in 1880; the church continued
9to grow and, with the help of parishioners who volunteered
10their time and building skills, more additions were completed
11in 1884, further expanding the church's communal nature; and
 
12    WHEREAS, On December 29, 1917, St. Joseph Church was
13destroyed in a fire; Father Joseph Meyer, the church's pastor
14at that time, was able to save the Blessed Sacrament from the
15Tabernacle mere moments before a ball of fire fell from the
16ceiling to the foot of the altar; outside, the church
17community gathered, helplessly watching their beloved house of
18worship burn; that night, a few men from the church made the
19rough trip to Teutopolis to retrieve an altar stone so
20services could resume as soon as possible the following
21Sunday; and
 
22    WHEREAS, St. Joseph Church was rebuilt and rededicated in
23December 1918, again with the help of parishioners who donated

 

 

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1time and money to restore the building; and
 
2    WHEREAS, St. Joseph Church remains a staple of Island
3Grove and serves as a testament to the fortitude, dedication,
4and perseverance of the previous generations of parishioners
5and the legacy of their faith moving forward; therefore, be it
 
6    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
7HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
8we congratulate St. Joseph Church in Island Grove on its
9sesquicentennial anniversary; and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
11presented to representatives of St. Joseph Church as an
12expression of our esteem and respect.